Nov. 15, 2007
ORLANDO, Fla.- On Thursday afternoon, the Marist men's soccer team fell to Fairfield, 3-1, in the MAAC Tournament quarterfinals. Though they lost the match by two goals, the Red Foxes out-shot Fairfield 14-8 and took seven corners to Fairfield's one.
In the opening two minutes of the match the Stags went down a man when they were whistled for a red card.
Even though they were down a man, the Stags were able to take the early lead when Sam Bailey found the top left corner of the net on a direct kick. The goal came just four minutes into the match.
The teams went to even strength when Nico Mossa (Pelham, N.Y.) got a red card of his own in the ninth minute of the match.
Prior to 9 v. 9 play, Fairfield dominated the action. Once the teams returned to even strength, the Red Foxes turned up the heat and controlled play. Marist held the Stags with out a shot after the early score during the first stanza. They pulled even when Shareif Ali (Hopewell Junction, N.Y) put away a Penalty Kick with ten minutes left in the half. He got the PK opportunity after a Fairfield hand ball in the box.
The two teams were tied at the break, but five minutes into the second half Marist keeper Daniel Owens (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) was whistled for a foul when he made a dive at a loose ball in front of the net. The bizarre call resulted in a PK for Fairfield. Bailey was able to put it in for a 2-1 Stag lead.
Then, with fifteen minutes left, Bailey struck again. He was able to put away a Jon Kaufman pass and give Fairfield a 3-1 lead.
Red Foxes Head Coach Matt Viggiano was happy with his team's effort. "We fought hard today but came up short. I thought our inexperience showed in that we let the officials control our play. Bottom line is we fought till the end, and I am happy with the effort of my guys."
Marist out-shot the stags 6-1 in the first half and 8-7 in the second. They also held a 5-0 advantage in second half corners (7-1 overall). Owens took the loss in net making three saves. His record fell to 4-4-1 on the year. Chris Nacca (Rochester, N.Y.) and Steve Fantuzzo (Rochester, N.Y.) each took three shots for the Red Foxes in the loss.
"Obviously we would have loved to have this game but we don't. We got some valuable postseason experience, and the team got better as the season progressed. My hope is that we remember the sour taste we have right now and use it to fuel our preparation for next year," the head coach said after the loss.
